Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Pratt Industries CEO
& Chairman Anthony Pratt today opened the expanded Pratt paper recycling
mill on Staten Island. The new facility contains a material recovery facility,
where paper and plastic recyclables can be processed, and a corrugated box
factory, where recycled paper can be converted into corrugated boxes. Before
today's opening, Pratt Industries had to ship materials from the existing paper
recycling mill to other Pratt plants for converting into boxes. This plant
contributes to the achieving the PlaNYC goal of reducing Citywide
carbon emissions 30 percent by 2030. The Mayor and Mr. Pratt were joined at the
announcement by Staten Island Borough President James Molinaro, City Council
Sanitation and Solid Waste Management Committee Chair Mike McMahon, Sanitation
Commissioner John J. Doherty and Economic Development Corporation President Seth
Pinsky.

"This expansion advances two goals that are essential to
our City's future: creating new jobs and promoting environmental sustainability,
which in today's economy go hand-in-hand," said Mayor Bloomberg. "The recycling
that happens here is also a vital part of the city's Solid Waste Management
Plan: this plant recycles approximately 1,100 tons of waste paper and old
corrugated containers every day - preventing the release of 1,200 tons of carbon
emissions and saving the equivalent of 17,000 trees."

"I want to thank Mayor Bloomberg. If not for his
leadership, we could not have expanded our operations here," said Anthony Pratt
of Pratt Industries. "He's created an environment, so to speak, which
facilitates investment in waste recovery, which is a great 21st century industry
for New York. We're proud to play a part in that recovery, turning waste paper
into manufacturing jobs for New Yorkers."

"Under
the stewardship of Anthony Pratt and his associates, Pratt has again
demonstrated their commitment to New York as a great place to do
business," said Borough President Molinaro. "I look forward to continuing to work with Pratt to
carry out this exciting new initiative."

"This expansion of the recycling plant on Staten Island
is an important milestone marking the continued success of our City's paper
recycling program," said Chair McMahon. "Recycling is not only good for the
environment, but is it good for our economy and is providing excellent union
jobs here in our borough. We look forward to working with Pratt and the
Department of Sanitation in helping our recycle program grow and flourish in the
future."

Pratt Industries invested $20 million in the expansion,
bringing total private investment in the site up to more than $330 million over
the last decade. The mill employs 240 people, and the expansion has brought 100
new full-time jobs to Staten Island.

Each year, the plant processes 200,000 tons of waste
paper collected from residential sources in the City, more than half of which is
delivered to the facility by barge. The finished product leaves the plant
by rail. The City has added a mile-long rail spur along Staten Island's western
shore that directly connects the mill to the Staten Island Railroad, helping
achieve greenhouse gas reductions outlined in PlaNYC as well as
reducing traffic congestion and pollution. Mayor Bloomberg reactivated the
Staten Island railroad in April 2007, and since then all of Staten Island's
solid waste has been transported by train rather than truck, a defining feature
of the City's Solid Waste Management Plan (SWMP).

"We're proud to see another important project
facilitated by our Industrial Development Agency bear fruit," said Seth W.
Pinsky, EDC President, and Chairman, New York City Industrial Development Agency
(NYCIDA). "This expansion at Pratt Industries will continue to generate quality
manufacturing jobs for the people of Staten Island, produce additional revenue
for the City and contribute to a cleaner environment."

"The Sanitation Department has worked very closely with
Pratt Industries over the years to deliver to their modern plant a steady stream
of recyclable paper products - both by barge and by land - that is being turned
from today's empty cereal box into tomorrow's pizza box," said Commissioner
Doherty. "This excellent partnership has allowed the City to reduce its waste,
reuse its resources and recycle hundreds of tons of paper each day."

Pratt Industries operates more than 50 facilities across
the United States employing 3,500 people in manufacturing 100% recycled paper
and packaging. Since the Staten Island paper mill began operations on Staten
Island in 1997, it has recycled over 3.2 million tons of paper, saved more than
54.5 million trees, and prevented 3 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions
from entering the atmosphere. The New York City Industrial Development Agency
(IDA) issued $120 million in tax-exempt bonds when the mill first opened.